Know Thyself through PHILOSOPHY….mine:
I think people would be happier if they focused more energy on communicating their message and less on worrying how the message will be received.
If what YOU are communicating is the truth, and YOU weren’t a dick about it, why would it matter how they took it?… more “Know Thyself Post #51”
Wouldn’t It Be Cool If we learned from LITERATURE?
WIBCI we thought about this….?
What is the cause of this deep seated evil? asked the baronese
The decay of religion. Said Beanchaud, and the preminence of finance which is simply premptified selfishness.
Money used not to be everything, there were some kinds of superiority that ranked above it. Nobility, genius, service done to the state, but nowadays the state takes wealth as the universal standard and regards it as the measure of public capacity.
-From Cousin Bette written by Honore’ de Balzac
What do YOU think of this quote?
What do YOU think is the cause of deep seated evil?… more “WIBCI Post #50”
Know Thyself through PHILOSOPHY:
Have you heard of Voltaire?
Voltaire is a fascinating guy worth checking out, I will attempt to tempt you into learning more about him in a post-sized nutshell: François-Marie Arouet, aka, Voltaire, was a French philosopher/writer/historian during the Age of Enlightenment (late 17th – early 19th century), known for: hating slavery, Christianity, Rousseau, and, the suppression of free thought. He was arrested and thrown into the Bastille for accusing a French prince of incest in a satirical verse, exiled for challenging a rich guy to a duel (whom consequently wussed out, didn’t show and paid for/had Voltaire arrested), and. wrote a book that praised the government of England over that of France (a book which was thereby, publicly burned and banned). He did science experiments with his lover, (whose husband sometimes stayed with them in their chateau), was pro-Free Speech, not afraid to criticize authority, and, wrote a science fiction novel called Micromégas in 1751 that is worth the read/listen, in my opinion.
According to the Philisophical Dictionary: English Conversationalist about religion Voltaire said:
….let us be just and do good, THAT, is the essential point.
That’s the end to every argument.
Let intolerant barbarians be execrated by mankind, and let everybody think as he likes.
-Voltaire
Wouldn’t It Be Cool If HISTORY of abuse of power stopped repeating itself?
If someone is accused of committing dozens of crimes, spanning decades, where they sexually took advantage of people in subordinate positions, should it matter how much money, power and influence when it comes to justice? Should sentencing be influenced if the accused is considered a role model and father figure? If it were up to YOU do you think being famous makes crimes more or less palatable?
Should they serve LESS time than an Average Joe because they created something you enjoyed?
OR
Should they serve MORE time than the Average Joe because they squandered a life of privilege by taking more from those less affluent?
OR
Should justice not consider how much money/power/influence someone has?
Second question, taking law and justice out of the equation…..WIBCI fallen father figures/role models, regardless of conviction, were no longer collecting royalty checks every week? Is there a need for disgraced heroes to continue to make money? Are networks really scrambling for content between ads? What could someone be accused of that would cause networks to reconsider?
What do YOU think?
Know Thyself through PHILOSOPHY:
To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most People exist, that is all.
-Oscar Wilde
Do YOU live or exist? What do YOU think the difference is?… more “Know Thyself Post #49”
Wouldn’t It Be Cool If we learned from PHILOSOPHY?
Daniel N. Robinson Ph.D. Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Georgetown/Oxford University on why PHILOSOPHY is so important:
We are not simply foils, merely material objects to be moved around by the whim and caprice of hidden forces. Lose that reason, suspend that criticality, become gullible, accept anything that custom serves up, and YOU enter the life of a puppet on a string, the life of a slave.
Do YOU agree that philosophy offers us the criticality to judge and live YOUR life on YOUR beliefs?
Do YOU feel more often like a puppet or the decider of YOUR own destiny?
Know Thyself through HISTORY:
Paul Strathern wrote:
The first people to come up with philosophical answers–that is, those who used reason and observation unclouded by metaphysical mumbo jumbo-were the ancient Greeks, in the sixth century B.C. Precisely why this major step in human evolution should have taken place at this time on the obscure shores of the Aegean remains a mystery.
Fact:
The Hellenistic period (323- 30 BC) when Greek cultural influence reached its peak within and beyond its own borders. This was a time of great progress in philosophy, science, the arts, architecture, and music influencing readers, writers, artists and scientists ever since and is considered the foundation for Western culture.
Fact:
The Ancient Greek world never hosted a state religion.
Coincidence, cause and effect, ingredients but not the full recipe?
What do YOU think?… more “Know Thyself Post #48”
Wouldn’t It Be Cool If POLITICS learned from history?
WIBCI the government did not defund Public Broadcasting?
Why can’t we back those that brought us Sesame Street, Masterpiece, Bob Ross and Mister Rogers Neighborhood?
I bet those that cancelled checks watched PBS when they were kids…. we can’t learn and be entertained for free without commercials every eight seconds propping up a billion dollar corporation that doesn’t pay taxes?
Not cool in my opinion.
Did YOU watch PBS as a kid? What shows? Curious George? Sesame Street? Arthur? Mr. Rogers? The Berenstain Bears? Bill Nye the Science Guy? The Electric Company? Barney?… more “WIBCI Post #47”
Know Thyself through LITERATURE:
Again, lyrics, to me, are literature; they are poems of someone’s feelings put to music.
The things, you say
Your purple prose just give you away
The things, you say
You’re Unbelievable
(What the)Seemingly lastless, don’t mean
You can ask us
Pushing down the relative
Bringing out your higher self
Think of the fine times, pushing
Down the better few, instead of
Bringing out the clues, to what the
World and everything anger to, brace
Yourself with the grace of ease
I know this world ain’t what it seems
(What the)
It’s unbelievable-EMF
Who would YOU say this to if YOU could?… more “Know Thyself Post #47”
Wouldn’t It Be Cool If POLITICS learned from PHILOSOPHY?
WIBCI we understood Myth vs. Philosophy?
Daniel N. Robinson Ph.D. Distinguished Professor Emeritus at Georgetown/Oxford University in a lecture on Philosophy discusses Myth vs. Philosophy:
The Myth answers perplexing questions but it answers them in a special kind of way. It answers them in such a way as to create and preserve a kind of civic coherence. Now to some extent Philosophy is disruptive in just this regard. The enterprise is not an essentially civic one. It does not begin with a settled position on political and moral matters, then seeking ways to enshrine the settled view. Rather the mission is a broadly epistemological one. The search, as we shall discover, is the search for truth, or at least for such illumination as to allow us to see the biases and half-truths that have lead from one blind alley to another in the labyrinth of thought.
Imagine if politics were so fluid and open to what is Better For The Most?
Imagine if those in politics wanted to illuminate the public rather than take from them?
Do YOU think philosophy could do this for YOU?… more “WIBCI Post #46”
Know Thyself through HISTORY:
Out of the 50 States only 10 names have an association with the English language.
Wonderful, descriptive and meaningful for future generations names, like, Mary-land which is named after the wife of King Charles I. Or how about North Carolina AND South Carolina, whose names, according to Wikipedia, have the exact same definition?: After King Charles I of England and his son, King Charles II of England. The name Charles itself is derived from Frankish karl, ‘man, husband’.
I think the states have all made their names have meaning rather than their meaning coming from their names but….for me, I prefer the 40 names that came from native languages; like Michigan which means Large Water in Ojibwe, or South Dakota meaning Ally or Friend in Sioux.
Why aren’t we taught this? I find more AMERICAN pride in a name that stands for friendship by a people who actually lived here, than a label whore king 6,000 miles away. Just me?
Do YOU know the language origin of YOUR state’s name and what it means? that is….assuming residence in the 50 US states, if not, pick one, there’s 50 of them.… more “Know Thyself Post #46”
Know Thyself through YOUR HISTORY:
What was one of YOUR favorite ‘things’, something that was all yours when you were a kid?
Mine was a bike. It had a name (one given by the maker, and one it earned from me:), a banana seat, no stupid bell, but I did used to put playing cards in the spokes of the wheels. And when I raced down that Franklin Street hill near my house, I felt free.
Do any of YOUR present day possessions make YOU feel like that?… more “Know Thyself Post #45”
Wouldn’t It Be Cool If we were allowed to learn from POLITICS?
With all the departments that have been closed, all the public services that have had budgets pulled or fully defunded, all the research and grants that are no longer funded….. where did/does the money go?
Does it offset Billionaires having to pay taxes?
Do we get to know?
Where do YOU think it is going? In YOUR opinion is wherever you think it is going Better than where it was?… more “WIBCI Post #45”
Wouldn’t It Be Cool If we learned from HISTORY?
According to The Archeologist there are many factors that cause healthy, powerful empires to collapse:
Inequality and Overspending: When wealth concentrates in the hands of a few, the majority of the population can suffer. This economic disparity can breed resentment and social unrest. The decline of the Roman Republic is partly attributed to the widening gap between rich and poor.
Corruption and Ineffective Leadership: Leaders who prioritize self-interest over the well-being of their citizens can erode public trust and weaken the fabric of society. The later Roman emperors are often cited as examples of corrupt leadership that contributed to the empire’s downfall.
Remind YOU of any present day ’empire’?…….
If YOU had the choice of hiding away a lot of money for yourself illegally, OR receive legally a shit-ton of money you had to give away, which would YOU do….really. Why?… more “WIBCI Post #44”
Know Thyself through PHILOSOPHY:
“Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about the things that matter’
-Martin Luther King Jr.
What do YOU think about this statement?
Have YOU been silent about anything?… more “Know Thyself Post #44”